Time European football broke-up with polluting sponsors

This week saw the return of the UEFA Champions League, Europe’s most elite footballing mega-event. In the men’s competition, the top teams have begun battling it out for a spot in the quarterfinals, with the women’s competition kicking-off in March. 

Erling Haaland promoting Etihad Airways, Creative Commons 2023

Millions of football fans worldwide will have cheered the return of this iconic competition. But under the mid-week floodlights in some of Europe’s most historic stadiums, elite football’s entanglement with polluting sponsors - in particular airlines - is filling screens and contaminating the air. 

Aviation is a major polluter and one of the hardest to decarbonise. The industry currently has no plan equal to meeting climate targets, and no viable clean alternative to fossil fuels available at scale. In the Round of 16 of the men’s competition, Arsenal, Manchester City, Real Madrid, PSG and Atlético Madrid all play with an airline shirt sponsor. UEFA itself is also sponsored by an airline. All these sponsorship deals add up to, at least, a staggering €917 million, based on the SportBusiness Sponsorship Database 2024.

Not only is elite football dependent on frequent and flagrant air travel, it is also highly dependent on the cash these companies cough up to promote and normalize polluting air travel to a captive audience of billions. 

That’s why, this Valentine’s, Badvertising, Fossil Free Football and the Game Changer Sponsorship Pledge are calling on UEFA to dump air lines and align their rules around commercial partnerships with a future where football, fans and the planet thrive. 

Why are we making this demand? Because in a carbon-constrained world, where the impacts of climate change are already disrupting the beautiful game, we cannot afford to stimulate demand for air travel. There is currently no effective plan  to decarbonise air travel, the industry is overly dependent on offset schemes which are practically worthless, and frequent air travel is the sole reserve of a tiny fraction of humanity. 

Football should not be promoting this planet-wrecking industry - and must kick them out. 

Commenting on the campaign, Freddie Daley, of Badvertising and the Cool Down Sport For Climate Action Network, noted that “If humanity is to truly tackle the climate crisis, then demand for air travel must sharply decline – this is a fact. Yet elite football continues to promote and normalise it as if the planet wasn’t heating. Football could be a powerful partner in the energy transition, but to do that, it must stop aligning with companies that are undermining the future of the game.”

Frank Huisingh of Fossil Free Football added, “We see more and more clubs, players and fans taking serious climate action. We shouldn’t then ask players to be running ads for polluting products like aviation. It’s time for football to break its ties with big polluters.”

Michael Hardy, of Game Changer, said: “Europe has been devastated by soaring temperatures, raging wildfires and deadly floods yet the continent’s premier football club competition still acts as a giant billboard for climate-wrecking airlines. From individual teams, stadiums and even the tournament itself the Champions League is awash with aviation sponsorship. Football is heading for a crash landing if it doesn’t take action to safeguard the future of the sport and protect its fans.” 

Rob Bryher, aviation campaigner for climate charity Possible, said: “UEFA already have questions to answer about the drastic increase in flights under their recently-announced new fixture schedule. The fixture changes make it harder for football to use its substantial influence in taking positive climate action, setting an example for the rest of us. It’s well-known that aviation emissions need to be reduced and it’s unacceptable for this beloved sport to fly in the face of the climate when its fans are dealing with the consequences of rising temperatures, costly bills, and extreme weather. Fixtures could be organised in a way that would enable teams to travel more sustainably, while high-carbon advertising encouraging fans to follow those teams by flying needs to be banned. We all need to pivot to sustainable transport instead of flying, and football should not be exempt.”